Punchbowl, Sydney: On Monday 10 May 2010, the Australian Islamic Mission (AIM) met with a delegation from Brunei Darussalam headed by Hadji Mahdi Abdul Rahman, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The meeting included a luncheon hosted by AIM at a local Muslim-owned restaurant.

AIM was represented by its president Dr Zachariah Matthews, Br Bashar Al-Jamal, the vice-president and Sh Mutasim Jarrah, Imam of the Punchbowl Musallah. Discussion at the meeting centred mainly on AIM’s grassroots interfaith and outreach programs as well as media relations. Dr Matthews took the opportunity to enquire about Brunei’s parallel legal system with provision made for Shariah courts.

The four-day visit to Sydney and Canberra, coordinated by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, included meetings with several organisations and institutions, to present an opportunity to increase, at very senior levels, Bruneian awareness and understanding of the Australian Muslim community, the role of Islam in Australian society and the interaction of different cultures and faiths in Australia.

Haji Mahdi Abdul Rahman was accompanied by three other Bruneian officials, the Director of Islamic Studies, an officer from the Dakwah Centre and an officer from the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Dr Benjamin Lavis from DFAT accompanied the delegation.